Yes, the EU is in serious structural economic trouble; and that is likely the real reason why quivering Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to exit the political stage before the larger communal catches on.

Within the remarks by German Finance Minister Scholz it’s the lamentation about the lack of investment into their grand collective economic scheme is where you find the economic dissonance, and ultimately the hilarious punch lines:

BERLIN - Reuters - Finance - Minister - Olaf

BERLIN (Reuters) – German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said on Saturday that he expected interest rates to remain very low for “the next few years”, adding that companies should seize the opportunity of near-zero borrowing costs to boost private sector investment.

The European Central Bank has already signaled even more monetary stimulus for the euro zone economy, hoping to arrest a downward spiral that could lead to an economic recession.

Member - Public - Government - Day - View

Asked by a member of the public during a government open day about his view on the outlook for interest rates, Scholz said: “I also believe that the time of higher interest rates can come up every now and then, but that will not happen in the next few years because of central bank policies.”

Then comes the real kicker of a comment… the part where the German political class admits what is happening: President Trump is kicking their collective asses; yet few within the audience recognize exactly what Olaf Scholz is saying.

Dissonance - Mindset - Policy - Population

So much multi-layered economic dissonance, it is quite amazing to think about how this mindset is driving economic and monetary policy over such a large population.

First, the reality of President Trump’s trade policy demanding reciprocity is the wrench in the EU machine. The EU is a protectionist trade system with one-way tariffs, and carefully crafted non-trade barriers designed to keep position as an exporter and limited access to their market.